Ogun celebrates at 45

Ernest Nwokolo, Abeokuta

Activities marking the 45th anniversary of the creation of Ogun State will begin on Wednesday, but on a low-key.

The state was created on February 3, 1976 by the then Head of State, Gen.  Murtala Muhammed, who announced in a nationwide broadcast the creation of seven states to increase the number of states in Nigeria from 12 to 19.

Ogun, one of three states created from the old Western State, comprising the six states in the present day Southwest, is a fusion of the old Abeokuta/Egbado and Ijebu/Remo divisions of the defunct Egba and Ijebu provinces.

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A statement on Sunday by the Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Alhaji Abdulwaheed Odusile, said the year-long celebration will be low-key due to the precarious public health situation in the country, following the resurgence of the COVID-19 pandemic, and in line with the government-declared protocols on how to combat the dreaded disease.

On Wednesday, there will be a state broadcast by Governor Dapo Abiodun. This will be followed by a virtual colloquium with the theme: “Ogun State: The Legacy of a Great Future”, the statement said.

The lead paper at the event will be presented by a renowned scholar of public administration and retired federal permanent secretary, Prof. Tunji Olaopa.

“Other programmes, including school competitions and the inauguration of landmark projects of the Governor Abiodun administration, will take place at different times in the year, especially as we move towards the second anniversary of this people-centred administration,” Odusile said.